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Kelly Schaefer

Kelly Schaefer

She/Her
  • Instructor, Higher Education Administration and Policy

Contact

kellyaschaefer@gmail.com

Academic Area

Higher Education Administration and Policy

Research Interests

Student engagement and belonging, mapping student journeys for low-income undergraduates, professional communication, ethics of care and standards for on-call and on-duty responses

Biography

Dr. Kelly Schaefer is an instructor for the Master's in Higher Education Administration and Policy. Prior to this work, Kelly advanced at Northwestern first as the Norris University Executive Director where she led the programming and operations for the building's staff and services for just over 2 years before stepping into the role of Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement where she led a portfolio of student engagement functions, including Wildcat Welcome, Family Engagement, Graduation, Multicultural Student Affairs, Student Enrichment Services, Social Justice Education, Religious and Spiritual Life, Leadership Development and Community Engagement, Fraternity and Sorority Life, and Student Organizations and Activities. After her AVP role, she became the Strategic Advisor for Student Affairs Initiatives, leading 15 cross-functional initiatives in Student Affairs and collaborating with campus partners.

Prior to NU, Kelly worked in a variety of capacities in higher education for twenty years at two institutions: She led campus and conference center programming and operations at the Illinois Institute of Technology and worked at DePaul University twice, in the student centers and in residence life.

In her spare time, she enjoys walking in cemeteries, eating popcorn for dinner on occasion, and spending time with her family and two cats.

Education

  • PhD, Professional and Technical Communication, Illinois Institute of Technology
  • MS, College Student Personnel, Western Illinois University
  • BS, English and Health Education, Bowling Green State University